To Catch a Sparrow
by MollyMonkey
Summary: James Norrington is set to sail to England with Will and Elizabeth Turner on the king's orders, but memories of a certain pirate sets them off course.
1. Eenie

Title: To Catch a Sparrow 1/?

Author: Molly Monkey

Pairing: Sparrington

Rating: PG..but will be Arr'R' later

Beta: none..forgive me!

Feedback: yes please!

Archives: , WhenDarknessBeckons, CaribbeanSlashers, anywhere please ask!

Disclaimer: Johnny Depp is mine! As are the rights to Pirates of the Caribbean! Mwahahaha! is shot and killed by Disney just kidding!All rights of PoTC belong sadly to Disney..and Johnny Depp belongs to himself.

In a sword fight, one should be able to concentrate on the duel and not be distracted, right? Wrong. Duelling William Turner, now happily married to my darling Elizabeth, proved to be very distracting indeed. My hands moved my sword without my knowing it to protect me from Will's attacks, but my mind was not with them. No, it was far, far away, across the sea on another ship. Not just any ship, oh no, it was on the Black Pearl, happily snogging Captain Jack Sparrow to be exact.

As Will and I moved about on the deck of the _Dauntless_, daydream Jack was currently relieving me of my clothes. Only the pain of Will's sword slicing into the tender skin of my collarbone brought me back to the present. With a very un-commodorish yelp, I jumped back, dropping my sword to the ground. Will looked up at me in surprise, his brown eyes widening curiously.

"Commodore?" there was a note of concern in his voice. Clearing my throat, I composed myself and bent to pick up my sword, gently touching the wound just inches away from my throat. Daydream Jack had disappeared and I was left with blood on my fingers.

"Are you all right, Commodore?" Will asked, untying the bandana from around his neck and placing it on the wound. I flashed him a brief smile, which turned out to be more of a grimace and struggled to maintain expressionless.

"I am fine, Mister Turner, just a bit…distracted, you might say," I answer smoothly. Will sheathed his sword, eyeing me suspiciously.

"Permission to speak freely, sir?" the boy had finally learned his place. I nodded and he grabbed my arm, pulling me in the direction of my quarters.

"Will, where are we going?" I demanded, knowing full well that he had not accepted my answer and required a private explanation.

"To your quarters, James, we need to talk," he answered, his voice telling me there was no room to argue. I sighed, letting my head drop and allowed myself to be steered into my room, the door shutting with a snap. Will not so nicely pushed me onto my bed and spat, "Out with it, Norrington." I feigned ignorance, "I am afraid I do not know what you mean, William." I put on my best I-am-not-hiding-anything face, hoping against hope that the boy would leave me be. But hope, apparently, was not on my side that day. Will pulled up the chair at my desk so that it was facing me and sat down in it.

"You can't fool me for an instant, James, I know you're hiding something. You never get distracted during a sword fight." I raise my hand absently to the wound on my collarbone, realising Will's bandana was gone, probably lying forgotten on the deck.

"And ever since we left Port Royal, you've had this distant look in your eyes. Your expression always seems to be that of pain, James. Why?" Will leaned forward, looking into my eyes. I dropped my gaze down to the floor. I could not tell him about Jack. Never, not in a million years. Here I was, the pirate-catching, strait-laced commodore, having given his heart away to a pirate, Captain Jack Sparrow to boot. Will could never know, nor anyone else, especially Jack.

"It's nothing, Will, just a bit of homesickness," I venture to say.

"You are lying, James, I know it. You've never been good at telling lies," Will chucked, still trying to maintain eye contact.

"I guess it would be pointless then to claim sickness, eh?" Will laughed again, hooking two fingers under my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze.

"I know you are still sore from losing Elizabeth," I wince slightly, "but I hope that you can open up to me, James, as I've opened up to you." I try to smile again, but it comes out as another grimace.

"It's nothing I can't handle, Will; just need a little time to sort things out." Will smiles at me sadly, ruffling my hair and standing up.

"I'll be in my quarters if you need to talk, James, savvy?" I roll my eyes at his use of the pirate word.

"As will I, William," I reply. I let out a sigh of relief as he leaves my room, shutting the door behind him. My eyes drift shut as images of Jack fill my head. The one that stands out the most is of the night after Barbossa and his crew were defeated. Elizabeth and Will came back to the _Dauntless_ with a disgruntled Jack in tow. Will had his arm wrapped around Elizabeth as soon as they were both on deck and Elizabeth snuggled up against his chest, smiling euphorically. That was the night my heart was shattered into a thousand pieces. Just moments later, I was locking Jack Sparrow in the brig, making sure he could not escape this time. I was about to leave when one of his chained hands caught my wrist, pulling me back to face him.

"I hate wha's happn'd, Commodore," he had slurred with an ache to his voice I had felt all through my bones.

"It is too bad that your crewmates abandoned you, Sparrow, but you are getting what you deserve." At the time, I had believed those words true. Jack chuckled sardonically, "Not 'bought that, mate, 'bout Will and your lass. She oughta been yours." I blinked at him, not quite sure what to say. He continued, "I know how ya feel, mate; was in the same situation not to long ago meself."

I had struggled to maintain a scornful look and replied evenly, "That matter is not up for discussion, Sparrow, least likely from you." Jack grunted, "Just dun let ya heart dwell on it too long, savvy? Try ta another for ya heart." I freed my hand from his grasp and started walking away.

"Summat closer than ya think may jus' be savin' his heart fur you, matey," Jack called after me. I had ignored his comment and it wasn't until later, when Jack fell over the wall after he'd been saved from the noose that I noticed he had said "he" instead of "she."

Tears pricked at my eyes as I thought of his final words to me. Not the words everyone heard, saying that he preferred Elizabeth and me together, but the words he whispered in my ear just before he left. "Come find me when you're James again, without the title of Commodore." I rubbed my eyes, trying not to let the tears fall. Here I was, on the ­_Dauntless_, without the title of Commodore, and headed to London with Will and Elizabeth, instead of finding Jack Sparrow.

The tears came, rebelling against my orders to stay hidden, running down my cheeks, attacking my very soul. I flung myself onto my stomach on the bed, burying my face into my pillow, letting my tears overtake me. The sobs came hard, from deep within my chest; wrenching sobs that tore at my already tattered heart. The images of my love still floated around in my head, his words taunting me bitterly.

As I lay there, bawling like a woman, I came to a realisation that this was no way to live. I had cried nearly every night since this man left me. I was going to end up cold and heartless if I let this go on. I concluded that I wanted to find Jack right away. I needed to find him; I needed him altogether.

Sitting up abruptly, I let the room swim before my eyes before I managed to stand, still not totally balanced. I was going to find Will and ask him, no plead with him to take me to Jack. Not bothering to wipe away the tears that still fell from my eyes, I stumbled across my room, threw open the door, and staggered down the narrow hallway below decks to Will and Elizabeth's shared quarters. My head protested, making my vision blurry and my legs weak as I knocked on the door. Will opened it and barely managed to suppress a sound of shock when he looked upon my sodden cheeks and red eyes. His body became double as my vision began to darken.

"I need to find Jack Sparrow," I gasped before everything turned black.


	2. Meenie

Title: To Catch a Sparrow 2/?  
Author:Molly Monkey  
Pairing: Sparrington  
Rating: PG-13 for language  
Beta: none..forgive me!  
Feedback: yes please!  
Archives: , WhenDarknessBeckons, CaribbeanSlashers, else please ask!  
Disclaimer:Johnny Depp is mine! As are the rights to Pirates of the Caribbean! Mwahahaha!.._is shot and killed by Disney.._just kidding! All rights of PoTC belong sadly to Disney..and Johnny Depp belongs to himself.

"James." My groggy mind struggled to acknowledge my name.

"James." There it was again, slightly louder.

"Norrington!" A voice spat, seemingly angry. I tried to open my eyes to tell the voice off for using that tone with me, but my lids were too heavy. I groaned instead, hoping to get the message across. I attempted to get my thoughts in order, to try to figure out where I was and why I was floating around in the dark. Cold water splashed upon my body with no warning, forcing my eyes open and jerking me upright. I reached for my sword out of instinct to defend myself against anymore cold water, only to find that it was not at my side. Sputtering, my eyes focused on my surroundings, coming face to face with a very red faced Will Turner sitting on the side of the bed.

"You bloody bastard," he growled before I could get a word out. My head spun a little and my vision doubled before returning to normal.

"Wha'?" was my very coherent response. It seemed as though I was sitting on Mister Turner's bed, though I have no idea how I came to be here.

"You are a horrible, filthy, lying bastard, Norrington," Will growled again. I resisted the urge to scratch my head curiously, trying to figure out why Will was so mad at me. As my mind came back to me, I remembered crying yet again over Captain Sparrow and stumbling to Will's room, telling him I needed to find said captain. After that, I don't remember a thing. Now, why Will would be so mad at me for asking the whereabouts of a certain Sparrow is beyond me.

"Will–" I protested weakly, reaching out a hand to grab his shoulder, but he danced out of my reach.

"How _dare_ you storm in here telling me you need to find Jack!" Will cut me off. I cocked my head enquiringly. Why was he so mad?

"Will, what's gotten into you?" I asked quietly, hoping to not provoke him. Much to my dismay, the boy snarled, actually snarled at me! He grabbed my shoulders and gave me quite a rough shake, "What's gotten into me, Norrington? What's gotten into you? I thought you had agreed to stop hunting Jack! I thought you had left your pirate hunting days behind! And now you bloody ask me to tell you where Jack is? As if I would give up his location to you!" he snorted, "What in the bloody hell is wrong with you?"

I blinked…repeatedly. And again…just to make sure I heard correctly. Will thought I wanted to capture Jack? To try to find him and hang him? My love? How could he think I would do such a thing? 'Will doesn't know about your love for Jack, you bastard.' An ugly voice taunted in the back of my mind. I opened my mouth to speak, but closed it again. What would Will think if I told him about loving Jack? I hardly think he would approve of a man loving another man, especially his pirate friend. I myself found it extremely different to come to terms with the fact that I had fallen in love with another man.

"Do you have an explanation for this, James? A good one for suddenly wanting to hunt down pirates?" Will asked, his voice lowering in volume. A thought struck me, albeit not a very good one, but it was a thought nonetheless.

"I need to talk to Mister Sparrow?" I did not intend for that to be in the form of a question, but it happened to turn out that way. Will snorted again, "You expect me to believe that, James? Because nothing short of you declaring your undying love for Jack will get you off the hook for this." My eyes widened in surprise. Could it be this easy? Could it possibly be this easy to just nod and say 'Yes, Will, I am in love with Captain Jack Sparrow. Please, may I know where to find him?'

I thought quickly; my morals were on the line here. Everything I had learned in all my training and growing up now came down to this. I was about to disobey everything that I had been taught and believed up until three months ago when Jack left me. Could I say out loud, to another person, that I, former Commodore James Norrington, was deeply and desperately in love with Captain Jack Sparrow, a pirate that escaped the noose one too many times? I let out a breath I wasn't aware of holding and thought it over quickly.

Will was looking impatient, like he was about to say something, or leave; the latter being the worse of the two. Could I surrender myself to this vulnerability? Knowing perfectly well that Will could think this love even more preposterous than pirate hunting? Could I? I nodded, more to myself than at Will, who gave me a questioning look.

"Yes, Will, I love him," I whispered fearfully. I sucked in a breath of air and held it, waiting for the inevitable reply. Will sighed angrily and rolled his eyes, "Bullshit, Commodore." What? What was that? Was that Turner boy trying to call my bluff? Could he not tell that I'm being serious here?

"I am in…" I paused to take a deep breath; dare I say those words again? "in love with Jack, William." My head started to throb from thinking so much. Will, much to my dismay, shook his head.

"I ought to call Elizabeth in here to have her listen to these lies," he said, standing up.

"No!" my hand shot out to grab Will's shirt and pull him back down. He nearly fell over, but managed to stay in an upright position.

"Get off, James!" he barked, wrenching his shirt away. I felt tears of frustration well up in my eyes. Elizabeth could not see me like this! First claiming love for the one pirate I had been so determined to see hang and second to be crying over said pirate!

"Please don't get your wife," I pleaded. No, I was not above begging at this point. Anything to get Will to believe me, "Someone needs to stay at the helm," I added as an afterthought. Will seemed to think this a good idea, as he stayed on the bed. He stayed silent though, his brow knotted in concentration. I took this time to arrange myself more comfortably, leaning back against the headboard and drawing the blanket up around my middle. The silence stretched into minutes, which felt like hours as the seconds ticked by. I started to wonder if I should say something when Will turned his head to look at me, his eyes burning into mine.

"What you're saying, James, about loving Jack, is that true? The honest truth, James?" he asked quietly. I nodded my head, "Yes, I am speaking the truth. I need to find him, Will; I can't keep living the way I have been. I'll end up killing myself if we continue to England." I dropped my head to concentrate on a piece of the blanket I was fiddling, suddenly finding it fascinating.

"James," Will sighed. I didn't look up at him. I had just laid my soul bare to this boy; if I looked at him, he would see everything I had hidden just by gazing into my eyes.

"James," his voice was more insistent, but still, I refused to look at him. Tears I was unable to stop fell down my cheeks for a second time that day. Will grasped my face in both hands and gently lifted it so I was looking up at him.

"James," he said for the third time, his thumbs brushing the tears away, "if you are telling the truth, I will go tell Elizabeth to turn this ship around immediately. We'll go to Tortuga first to find out where Jack is; he's out on the Pearl now somewhere around there and hopefully we'll be able to run into him. Please, James, tell me you are not an amazing actor and you have truly fallen in love with my friend, because I will kill you myself if I find differently."

A sob escaped from my mouth at Will's words. We were going to find Jack! At last I could attempt to lead a better life than I ever have. I closed my eyes as I felt more sobs building in my chest. I tried to suppress them with a deep breath, but it only emitted a cry of relief. More tears slipped over Will's thumbs that he was unable to sweep away.

"I love him," I whispered brokenly. My resolve crumbled and I sagged against Will wailing piteously. His arms wrapped around me, holding me tight to his chest as my own went around his waist.

We sat like that for who knows how long before all the crying started to make me feel drowsy. Too lazy to politely inform Will I was about to collapse on him again, I let my eyes drift shut and succumbed to sleep.


End file.
